One Person Under God

 

For what nation is there so great, who hath God so nigh unto them, as the Lord our God is in all things that we call upon him for?

 And what nation is there so great, that hath statutes and judgments so righteous as all this law, which I set before you this day?

 Only take heed to thyself, and keep thy soul diligently, lest thou forget the things which thine eyes have seen, and lest they depart from thy heart all the days of thy life: but teach them thy sons, and thy sons' sons; Deuteronomy 4;7-9

We've all recited the Pledge of Allegiance and we are often reminded of the words "one nation, under God" but have we considered that you and I are one person under God? We want our nation to recognize God, but are we recognizing Him in our daily lives? 

In Deuteronomy 4,5 Moses is recounting how God gave the children of Israel the Ten Commandments. He is reminding them of how they promised God to obey His laws. The Israelites had heard the voice of God, the thundering and lightning, the smoke on the mountain. They were afraid, so God had Moses go up on the mountain to receive the Ten Commandments. When Moses left, the people forgot their promise. By the time Moses came down in just forty short days, they were worshipping a golden calf! They had completely lost their fear of God. 

Where are we today? Are we not a nation so great with God so nigh in all the things we call upon Him for? Are not our statutes and judgments and laws righteously based on God's Ten Commandments? Have we failed to take heed? Have we forgotten all the things we have seen that God has brought us through? Have we failed to teach our children and our grandchildren? 

I won't be so pessimistic as to think there is no hope. I refuse to believe that we can no longer be "one nation under God". Moses led the people of Israel — one man under God. Beginning with the Mayflower Compact, it is He that hath made us and not we ourselves.  William Brewster drew up the Mayflower Compact — one man under God. Harriet Beecher Stowe wrote for the abolition of slavery  — one woman under God. Are we not each one person — man or woman — under God who can be leaders in our homes, in our churches, in our communities, and in our nation? These and so many others have taken it upon themselves to be that one person, to make that difference, to lead their nation to be united, one nation under God. 

O that there were such an heart in them, that they would fear me, and keep all my commandments always, that it might be well with them, and with their children for ever! Deuteronomy 5:29

May each of us be that one person under God's direction to change the direction of our homes, churches, communities, and nation so that God will bless America.

Blessings,

Gail

Hey Kids:

You may be the only person in your classroom this year who parents' and church has taught them about the Lord. How can you be that one person under God to make a difference in your class? 

Here are a few ideas.

• Sit with someone at lunch or recess who seems alone.
• Share a pencil or crayon with someone who doesn't have their materials.
• Give a smile and a greeting to new children.

Above all, Be Kind.

Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you. ~Ephesians 4:32

Mercy Drops

Those who dwell under his shadow shall return;

They shall be revived like grain,

And grow like a vine.

Their scent shall be like the wine of Lebanon.

~Hosea 14:7 (NKJV)

There's a storm brewing over on the mountain. The billowy clouds rise above the haze. The thunder rolls like distant cannon fire, ever increasing in intensity as the battle draws closer. As of yet, there is no sight of lightning, only heat and humidity and the silence of waiting. No stirring breeze. Then the wrens begin to fuss and the robins chirp and the crows call alarming the trees to the impending weather war. Do they feel their lives are endangered?

 As the storm draws near, it broadens its spectrum, rolling from one valley to the next. Down the hillside and up the other. How long before I must retreat inside to safety? Away from lightning bolts and pelting rain, swaying trees? Aww, it's just a summer storm they say. It will pass. But what will lie in its path? Will there be trees down, houses crushed, fires? Or simply the passing of another summer storm?

As I survey the skies of my younger days, I see political storms that came and went, leaving a little more destruction in their path each time. The last fifty years for the most part have not been kind to us. Apparently, we haven't learned a thing. As Israel mocked Jeremiah and the prophets, mocking seems to be quite the rage in our day. Morality, life, God-given identity, and Christians are mocked in the marketplace of today's cancel culture. 

The storm brought a passing shower and now I see a rainbow forming. I am also beginning to see a rainbow forming in the political storm of cancel culture. Of all the strangest places, I see it forming over the Olympics. Athletes from several nations, as well as Americans, are giving God praise and glory for their accomplishments. Teams huddle in prayer. Right now the storm of cancel culture rages but maybe there's another storm forming underneath.

 Maybe it's the rain of revival. 

Mercy drops round us are falling, 

but for the showers we plead. 

~D.W. Whittle (1840-1901)

Father, we pray for wisdom in the midst of the storm. We are thankful for the mercy drops of revival we see. Lord daily may we pray for the showers, the down pour of revival. In Jesus's name. Amen. 

Hey Kids:

The school year is beginning and there will be lots of changes. Change often brings opportunities. 

How we handle those changes and opportunities is the key to making a difference in the culture in which we live. 

Read Daniel chapter 1 with your parents. Discuss how Daniel, a young man, must have felt as a captive. 

How did Daniel handle a situation where he had to choose between serving God and obeying the authority of the king?

How can Daniel's example help you as you begin a new school year?

Plundering and Pillaging

 My friend and I went antiquing last week. As we entered one of the shops the owner, an older white-haired lady like me, asked, "Can I help you find something?"

My reply, "We're just plundering."

She laughed. "My mom used to say, 'I'm pillaging.'" My friend said her mom also said pillaging. We continued to talk and laugh as we plundered and pillaged through other folk's treasures from days gone by. Kind of sad, strangers going through the things once cherished.